Is the iPhone Better Than Sex? That Depends ... Plus More iPhone and Apple News

iPhone.com better than Sex.com? DomainToolsBlog claims that Apple purchased the iPhone.com domain name from its previous owner - who'd owned it since 1995 - for "at least a million dollars." While there's no way to confirm the exact details of the sale (Apple is mum), AppleInsider confirmed that Apple does in fact own iPhone.com, and also reminded us that this sale "is one of the largest of its kind," rivaling that of Sex.com.

Initial iPhone sales may top rosiest estimates: Although neither company has released exact sales figures, Apple and AT&T are claiming that the iPhone has "all but sold out" after only three days on sale. AT&T spokesman Mark Siegel told USA Today: "We sold more iPhones in the first weekend of sales than in the first month of sales for any device in AT&T history." Indeed, when a Bloomberg reporter checked iPhone inventory on Apples website last night, 95 of 164 Apple Stores reported running out. The same AT&T spokesman told Bloomberg that "AT&T sold out of the phone in almost all its 1,800 stores, with 'just a handful' of locations keeping the handset in stock." That's good news for Apple, of course, made even better by the revelation that the company stands to earn a 55 percent profit margin on 8GB iPhones, according to iSuppli.

In addition to the bottom-line boost, the iPhone's launch is also bumping Apple's stock price, which was up about 5 percent this morning, to a little over $126 a share. AT&T's stock is up slightly too, after having fallen during morning trading. (Maybe AT&T execs should have thought of beefing up their customer service system before the iPhone launch. Although the company is trying to reassure customers today that iPhone activation problems have been solved, mostly.)

Everyone's an iPhone engineer: Now that the excitement of the iPhone launch is behind us (sort of), the media is turning to its second-favorite iPhone-related gambit: ruminating on how to improve the device. BusinessWeek has some thoughts on making it better for, surprise, business users. The Unofficial Apple Weblog took matters into its own hands and hacked the iPhone by switching out the SIM card, effectively turning it into a "contract-free WiFi-enabled 6th Generation iPod." A ZDNet blogger, a Verizon Wireless customer who defected to AT&T when he bought an iPhone, laments the spotty voice coverage (and, of course, the lameness of EDGE), but also wishes the iPhone had three key apps featured on his Treo: a dedicated RSS client, a mileage logger, and a password manager like Splash Data's Splash ID. And the editors over at CNET Crave have lots of iPhone fixes, complete with odds on whether their suggestions will actually make it into a second-gen version.

One for the iPhone etiquette books: An ArsTechnica staffer who had to forego a friend's wedding rehearsal to acquire an iPhone on June 29, says there should be a new rule: Never bring an iPhone to a wedding. At least not a wedding held on June 30. (Even if you don't read the whole blog post, scroll down for a look at the hilarious sign posted outside a propane company in god-knows-where, USA.)

Universal back out of long-term iTunes deal…or does it? Apple is denying yesterday's report that Universal Music Group backed out of its plan to renew its contract to sell songs on the iTunes Store. The dispute is reportedly over Apple's refusal to budge on the price of songs - either 99 cents for standard tunes or $1.29 for non-DRM, higher-quality tracks. Apparently, the iTunes Store's ascent to the No. 3 U.S. music retailer has made UMG rethink its need to "support Apple with a long-term arrangement."

In other news: Apple released a patch to fix the popping sound that's been reported with some external speakers used with Intel-based Macs. In a fit of generosity, Apple has also released the WWDC version of Mac OS 10.5 (Leopard) to online Apple Developer Connection members (Select or Premier). The rumor that Apple will bring out mini-notebooks, complete with multi-touch displays, is not dead! Fake Steve Jobs now has more than just his blog as a platform; he's also granted CNET an exclusive interview.

Have a safe and pleasant Independence Day (or just a very nice Wednesday, if you don't live in the U.S. of A.) - we'll be back here with another news roundup on Thursday!

Comments

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jackie113

July 04, 2007 at 9:05pm

CALL us 'Naive' but everything within us detects a flaw in the logic. We expect at some point the North American cell phone/internet communications will undergo an attack. Pershaps not the year 2007 but in these years to follow.

Cameron

July 04, 2007 at 9:04pm

Thanks for remembering that not all of us live in the good ol' USA.

jackie113

July 04, 2007 at 9:00pm

The PDA phones have been about along while now all with touchscreen tech. and each new one has improved sencitivity. I got no doubts that the iphone will let us down. Ive hear that there will be 5 colours aswell. Exciting stuff.

doug rogers

July 03, 2007 at 5:57pm

I finally realized that that pop up ad is indeed from when I click on the link to read the article. I thought I was accidentally clicking on something else. Folks it's annoying, and I can get my Mac information any number of places without having to deal with that. Lose it.

Anonymous

July 03, 2007 at 12:37pm

The photo for this story on your start page is totally over the top, purient, and shaelessly exploiting sex. I love it!